Ken Kelly
Software Engineer – Blockchain, Web3 & Backend Systems
About
I’m a Softare Engineer with specialization in Backend and Blockchain and Web3 with 8+ years of experience building secure, scalable, and high-performance systems. My expertise spans backend development with Node.js, Java, and Rust, combined with deep knowledge of blockchain principles, consensus mechanisms, cryptographic primitives, security standards, and smart contract security techniques.
Blockchain & Smart Contract Expertise:
EVM chains: Solidity, Hardhat, Foundry, OpenZeppelin
Cardano: Plutus (Haskell), Aiken, Lucid-Evolution, MeshJs
What I Do
Design and implement smart contracts, backend integrations and REST APIs for decentralized applications
Build and deploy secure wallet solutions
Passion & Drive
I am passionate about DeFi and decentralized systems, and thrive on the challenge of turning new requirements into production-ready systems, optimizing performance for scale and, ensuring security, robustness, and reliability** in Web3 applications.
"Be a student as long as you still have something to learn, and this will mean all your life." -- Henry L. Doherty
Tech Stack
Experience
TX Meta
Lead Software Engineer
♦ Design and development of a crypto-to-mobile money on/off ramp and payments solution using stable coins like USDT with a focus on providing a channel for cross-border payments and enabling general crypto utility.
♦ Lead architecture and developement of a member-owned blockchain investment platform (UC DAO) allowing users to propose investment projects with governance features.
C2C Advisory Services
Platform Lead Engineer
♦ Architected and implemented Java-based microservices using Spring Boot, PostgreSQL, and Kafka for a financial platform that supports 2M+ users, enabling scalable payments and reporting.
♦ Integrated M-Pesa via the Daraja API and implemented Kafka for high-throughput transaction process- ing, increasing TPS by 40%.
♦ Managed CI/CD pipelines on Bitbucket/GCP and led API documentation with OpenAPI for seamless front-end integration.
♦ Worked closely with front-end engineers to deploy backend infrastructure on Kubernetes.
Africa Blockchain Center
Cardano Blockchain Engineer
♦ Designed blockchain integration APIs for the AfyaRekod platform, enabling patient-owned medical data to be shared in a positive way on the Cardano blockchain. Implemented using Cardano, Mesh JS
♦ Led development of TraceLedger, a blockchain-based track-and-trace solution for coffee bean supply chain transparency..
♦ Guided a team of five developers in Agile sprints, introduced code reviews and CI / CD pipelines, improved delivery schedules by 30%.
BandaHealth
FullStack Developer
♦ Developed BandaGo, a mobile medical application for low-resource facilities, with middleware for effi- cient data caching and optimization of API performance (30% improvement).
♦ Led UI redesign, enhancing user adoption, and built custom iDempiere ERP plugins for business logic customization.
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